TO TANMAYA AND ALL- seva to God = 24 / 7

[Guest guest]

Namaste

 

Great message Tanmaya, totally spoke to my daily life. Seems this

topic is in the air. And well it should be, as this discussion is at

the core of my life and all of us in Maa's Family. So, tonight in

Gita study, Swami talked about the central comments of your post:

real committed service to God is 24 / 7 and this ideal behavior only

occurs when the ego has been fully effaced by the pure light of God.

If fact, the only way to be in this Divine Attitude, to be Udas, the

Servant of Circumstance, is to surrender to God. Then, by God's Grace,

in God's own time, God controls our actions.

 

Someone asked: How will I know when I am enlightened? How do I know

when I am acting in an ideal way?"

Swami answered: "When you are absorbed in the action, full of joy, and

it is effortless-seems to go by itself, and time just disappears."

 

I pray we can all support each to as we strive for this Divine State

of life. For, what else are we here for?

 

I hope you can all listen to the Chapter 11 of Gita study, from Friday

night the 9th.

 

Jai Maa Jai Swami

 

vishweshwar

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

, "ty_maa" <dsjames wrote:

>

>

> Thank you for the story Nanda.

>

> It reminded me of an incident that happened a few weeks ago. I was

> walking down the hall of my workplace, ready to leave for the day when a

> young fillipino man- a casual work acquaintence- fell into step with me.

> We exchanged a few superficial words as we walked along, when,

> suddenly-and completely out of context from every point of view-he

> asked, "What is the meaning of life?"

>

> Those who work with the public all day, under high pressure conditions,

> will understand that I was fried, tired, ready to go home, where I would

> have a shower, some nourishment, take a few deep breaths, purge my mind

> of the distractions of the day, and re-inter a more silent and spiritual

> state of consciousness before retiring for the night.

> That was the plan; that's what my mind was reaching for... And what's

> wrong with that? We're only human, after all.

>

> What is wrong with that is that even as I heard the question, spoken

> with a slightly different tone of voice, and knew that it was coming

> from a deeper, more real, part of his being, I also knew that I had

> already lost the opportunity.

>

> Although it only took a couple of seconds to get more centered

> again-into a more silent, spacious, God-centered state, from which I

> might have been able to say something useful, the brief opening had

> already closed. Looking slightly embarrased as though he had said

> something off color, the young man was talking the usual superficial

> nonsense by which our egos so effectively shield themselves from the

> Divine and from our higher Self.

>

> The thought that crossed my mind then was "Eternal vigilance is the

> price of liberty". But, in addition, it is also the price of effective

> service to others.

>

> So far as my personal sadhana is concerned, I can set aside a couple of

> times during the day to put distractions on the shelf and think of God.

> But, if I want to be a servant of the Mother, to do Her work in the

> world, there are no banker's hours. For such a servant of the Mother,

> for a karma yogi, the metaphor is closer to that of a doctor, with his

> pager, always on call; or that of a mother with young children-no

> vacations for her! Or even that of a gunfighter in Olde Tomestone

> Territory.

>

> The Divine Mother becomes very demanding if we wish to work for

> Her-leisure time, recreation, superficiality, being too tired to think

> of God-I can't visualize Her Herself in those indulgent moods. And so I

> guess She doesn't expect me to indulge in them either. Mothers always

> teach by example.

>

> And so the words came up: "eternal vigilance is the price of liberty".

> And, if karma yoga, as the service of the Divine in humanity, is to

> produce one's own liberation, the spiritual goal, as any yoga must, then

> the quality of the work must be equal to the goal... And that would

> mean, "no vacations".

>

> But, is that such a harsh burdon? Unbroken Presence of God is itself a

> continuous vacation in the Bahamas. And continuous Presence, offering

> the Lord the fruits of our work-not once at the end of the day, but

> moment by moment-is all that is required of a karma yogi. Because

> Presence of God ensures the presence of mind, as also the inspiration,

> to say and do the right thing at the right time. And that is efficient

> service.

>

> And, for our own realization, being spiritually mindful in every moment

> is also the way: God is not a respector of persons, nor a respector of

> time. Our liberating encounter with the Spirit may be waiting for us

> around the next corner, or within the next moment. There are no rules

> where God is concerned. The curtain may part at any moment, and God

> Himself may look through and say, "What is the meaning of life?"

>

> Tanmaya

>

>

>

>

>

>

> , "Nanda" <chandimaakijai@> wrote:

> >

> >

> > Dear All,

> >

> > Got this email today and wanted to share it with you. It reminds me of

> > why we pray for Universal peace - it is not just a lofty idea but a

> > really practical suggestion to help ourselves. When we pray for

> others,

> > we are really praying for ourselves. When we lift others, we are

> really

> > lifting ourselves.

> >

> > Jai Maa

> > Nanda

> >

> > ===================

> >

> > A mouse looked through the crack in the wall to see the farmer and his

> > wife open a package.

> >

> > What food might this contain? He was devastated to discover it was a

> > mousetrap.

> >

> > Retreating to the farmyard, the mouse proclaimed the warning,"There is

> a

> > mousetrap in the house! There is a mousetrap in the house!"

> >

> > The chicken clucked and scratched, raised her head and said,"Mr.

> Mouse,

> > I can tell this is a grave concern to you, but it is of no consequence

> > to me. I cannot be bothered by it."

> >

> > The mouse turned to the pig and told him, "There is a mousetrap in the

> > house."

> >

> > The pig sympathized but said, "I am so very sorry, Mr. Mouse, but

> there

> > is nothing I can do about it but pray. Be assured you are in my

> > prayers."

> >

> > The mouse turned to the cow. She said, "Wow, Mr. Mouse. I'm sorry

> for

> > you but it's no skin off my nose."

> >

> > So, the mouse returned to the house, head down and dejected to face

> the

> > farmer's mousetrap alone.

> >

> > That very night a sound was heard throughout the house; like the sound

> > of a mousetrap catching its prey.

> >

> > The farmer's wife rushed to see what was caught. In the darkness, she

> > did not see it was a venomous snake whose tail the trap had caught.

> >

> > The snake bit the farmer's wife. The farmer rushed her to the

> hospital

> > and she returned home with a fever. Everyone knows you treat a fever

> > with fresh chicken soup, so the farmer took his hatchet to the

> farmyard

> > for the soup's main ingredient.

> >

> > But his wife's sickness continued, so friends and neighbors came to

> sit

> > with her around the clock. To feed them, the farmer butchered the

> pig.

> >

> > The farmer's wife did not get well; she died. So many people came for

> > her funeral that the farmer had the cow slaughtered to provide enough

> > meat for all of them.

> >

> > So, the next time you hear someone is facing a problem and think it

> > doesn't concern you, remember when one of us is threatened, we are all

> > at risk.

> >

> > In the book of Genesis, Cain said this about Abel, his brother, to our

> > God: "Am I my brother's keeper?"

> >

> > We are all involved in this journey called life. We must keep an eye

> > out for one another and make an extra effort to encourage one another.

> >

> > REMEMBER: EACH OF US IS A VITAL THREAD IN ANOTHER PERSON'S

> TAPESTRY;

> > OUR LIVES ARE WOVEN TOGETHER FOR A REASON.

> >

> >

> > ~Author Unknown~

> > =========================

> >

>